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Most Americans Oppose AI Data Centers, NBC Poll Finds

President Trump encourages data center development, citing economic benefits.

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Published
Most Americans Oppose AI Data Centers, NBC Poll Finds

What this story says

  • A majority of Americans, 69%, oppose the construction of AI data centers in their local areas, according to an NBC News poll.
  • 45% of respondents strongly oppose the idea of AI data centers in their communities.
  • President Donald Trump stated that communities opposing data centers risk being 'backwards and poor' and should 'let Data Reign' for success and lower taxes.
  • Voters interviewed by NBC News along Interstate 80 expressed opposition to data centers near their communities.

Who covered it

Left 75%(6)Centre 25%(2)Right 0%(0)

Percentages are shares of the 8 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. Coverage measured .

Trust

42/100

Craft

61/100

Hype

41/100

8 sources · methodology

Thin on the right so far

None of the 8 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.

This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.

A poll conducted by NBC News between 20 August and 1 September found that 69% of respondents oppose the construction of AI data centers in their local areas. Of those, 45% expressed strong opposition. These findings contrast with statements made by President Donald Trump, who has promoted the development of such facilities.

Trump wrote on Truth Social in late August that communities opposing data centers risk becoming 'backwards and poor.' He stated that for success, lower taxes, and widespread jobs, communities should 'let Data Reign.' Voters interviewed by NBC News during a road trip along Interstate 80, which passes through key swing districts, also voiced opposition to having data centers near their communities. These voters, spanning the political spectrum, indicated that their concerns were more about their immediate surroundings than about appearing 'backward'.

Coverage

What the coverage left out

None of the reports below mention the specific dates of the NBC News poll, which were conducted from 20 August through 1 September. The reports also do not include any figures on the potential economic benefits or costs associated with AI data centers, such as job creation or investment figures, that President Trump cited as reasons for their development.

Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 7 times, most recently on 7 Sept 2026, 18:00, and will add the sides that appear.

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

6 rated outlets

  • The report from Joe.My.God., which is rated left, led with the findings of the NBC News poll. It stated that 69% of respondents oppose AI data centers in their local areas, with 45% strongly opposing them. The outlet also included President Trump's remarks from Truth Social, where he linked opposition to data centers with communities being 'backwards and poor' and encouraged them to 'let Data Reign' for prosperity and lower taxes. The report noted that voters interviewed by NBC News along Interstate 80 also expressed opposition to data centers near their communities.

Centre

2 rated outlets

We have not written our reading of the centre coverage of this story. The centre-rated outlets that ran it are listed below.

Right

0 rated outlets

No outlet rated right has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.

Questions about this coverage

How did the left and right cover Most Americans Oppose AI Data Centers, NBC Poll Finds?
Of the 8 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 75% are rated left, 25% are rated centre, 0% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
Is Most Americans Oppose AI Data Centers, NBC Poll Finds left or right?
Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 8 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
Is the coverage of Most Americans Oppose AI Data Centers, NBC Poll Finds biased?
Most Americans Oppose AI Data Centers, NBC Poll Finds is one event reported by 8 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
Which side is not reporting Most Americans Oppose AI Data Centers, NBC Poll Finds?
When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
Which outlets covered Most Americans Oppose AI Data Centers, NBC Poll Finds?
8 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
What percentage of Americans oppose AI data centers?
An NBC News poll found that 69% of respondents oppose the construction of AI data centers in their local area. Of this group, 45% stated they 'strongly oppose' the idea, indicating significant public apprehension towards this type of technological expansion.
What has Donald Trump said about data centers?
President Donald Trump has encouraged the development of data centers, stating that communities opposing them risk being 'backwards and poor.' He advised that for success, lower taxes, and jobs, communities should 'let Data Reign.' He also declared that communities blocking data centers would end up 'living in squalor.'
Where did NBC News interview voters about data centers?
NBC News interviewed voters along Interstate 80, a route stretching from Nebraska to New Jersey. This area includes several swing districts crucial for upcoming House and Senate elections. The voters interviewed, representing a range of political views, expressed opposition to data centers being located near their communities.

Read it at the source

8 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

6

Centre

2

Right

0

No outlet in this group ran the story.

Not rated

0

No outlet in this group ran the story.

How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

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